Chapter 638: The Shocked Border! I (1/2)
Chapter 638: The Shocked Border! (I)
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
”Bastard! This king is furious!”
Standing by a pillar decorated with a coiling dragon, King Qi gritted his teeth, his clenched fists cracking. His face was pale and twisted into a nasty grimace.
He was in no mood to see the smug face of Wang Gen, but the assembly today was for celebrating the victory in the southwest. As an Imperial Prince of the Great Tang, he had to attend.
On the other end, the Tongluo Great General Abusi also had a rather sour expression. He had not forgotten the accusations Wang Chong had made against him in the Regional Commanders incident. In addition, Wang Chong had tied up his only son Abutong to the banner of Kunwu Training Camp, utterly humiliating him.
But not even King Qi, an Imperial Prince of the Great Tang, could say anything, so how could he?
”Damn it! I'll let you be proud for now, but I'd like to see how long you can stay that way.”
In the hall, those ministers who usually attached themselves to King Qi and opposed the Wang Clan and King Song all had awful expressions.
But no matter how unwilling they were, they had to shut their mouths and not say a single word.
Bong!
The ring of a bell immediately attracted the notice of the gathered ministers within Taiji Palace.
”All subjects, listen to the decree!”
Behind the curtain of beads high up on the platform, the majestic and resounding voice of the Sage Emperor could be heard.
”When King Song arrives in the southwest, Wang Chong is to immediately return to the capital without the slightest delay!”
”May the Emperor live ten thousand years!”
The officials and nobles all kneeled, the entire hall falling silent.
Boom!
The news of the Sage Emperor's decree quickly spread across the empire. Even the slowest person now knew of the victory of the southwest. Given Wang Chong's enormous achievement, the Sage Emperor was certainly planning to richly reward him in ordering him to return to the capital.
From this moment onward, the Wang lineage were noble beyond words!
After Old Master Wang, the Wang Clan had once again produced a pillar of the empire that could awe the world.
”Older Brother, we chose the right one!”
After the assembly, within Yuzhen Palace, Consort Taizhen sat on her bed and slowly put down the piece of silk upon which the 'Song of Purity and Peace' had been written. As she gave a long sigh, her expression became extremely relaxed.
The assembly had just been concluded, but she had already learned of the Sage Emperor's plans for Wang Chong.
”Indeed, hahaha. Who could have thought that I, Yang Zhao, could have had such an extraordinary sworn brother? Even renowned generals like Dalun Ruozan and Geluofeng lost at his hand. Little Sister, with a sworn brother like this, our status in the palace will be as steady as Mount Tai!”
Yang Zhao held his hands behind his back and looked proudly at Consort Taizhen.
But the influence of the southwest victory was far from restricted to the capital. While the entire capital was astir, countless carrier pigeons were also making their way to the Great Tang's borders.
At the Great Tang's western border, Longxi…
”What? The southwest border was actually won? Dalun Ruozan and Geluofeng were defeated in battle?”
In the westernmost Big Dipper City of Longxi, the formidable and handsome figure of the Great Tang's Big Dipper Great General stood as erect as a spear atop the city wall. Across from him was an endless sea of Tibetan cavalry.
Even someone as composed as Geshu Han, who would remain unflinching even if Mount Tai were to collapse before him, appeared shocked upon hearing the news from the southwest.
If he remembered correctly, Dalun Ruozan and Geluofeng were powerhouses of the southwest who had once sat on par with the former Annan Protector-General, Zhangchou Jianqiong, the current Minister of War. Geshu Han had never exchanged blows with Geluofeng or Dalun Ruozan, had never even met them.
But Dalun Ruozan had clashed with Zhangchou Jianqiong, and even the Tiger of the Empire had found himself exceeded in some aspects.
For an individual like Zhangchou Jianqiong to be stymied in the southwest and be forced to seek other means to enter the Imperial Court and become Minister of War, one could easily imagine the abilities of Dalun Ruozan and Geluofeng.
But the southwest had actually been won!
With no Zhangchou Jianqiong or any other Imperial Great General, only first-ranked generals like Wang Yan and Xianyu Zhongtong, the Tang had actually succeeded in defeating the five hundred thousand soldiers of the Mengshe–Ü-Tsang army.
Not even Geshu Han would dare to think about pulling off such a feat.
”Does this brat have such impressive abilities? Has this news been confirmed? Did he have no other reinforcements?”
Geshu Han gripped the letter, his eyes twitching.
He had been holding this message for some time, but he still found the news hard to believe. That brat who had made so much trouble during the Regional Commanders incident and had so harshly denounced him and the other protector-generals actually had this sort of ability?
This was simply too absurd!
”Great General, this matter has been confirmed multiple times. It's not just us. The same news was sent to the other border protector-generals and Great Generals as well. The youngest son of the Wang Clan, Wang Chong, on a mountain in the southwest, used one hundred thousand soldiers to contend against the five hundred thousand soldiers led by Dalun Ruozan, Huoshu Huicang, Geluofeng, and Duan Gequan. In the end, he unexpectedly managed to thoroughly rout them, killing more than four hundred thousand soldiers. This fact is beyond doubt.
”Dalun Ruozan has already withdrawn to the lands of the Ngari Royal Lineage on the Tibetan Plateau. It seems like Geluofeng was heavily injured and was taken to Erhai. It's not known if he's dead or alive.”
Nearby, a scout general for the Big Dipper Army bowed, his head hanging very low.
Buzz!
Geshu Han said nothing, but he couldn't stop his eyes from twitching a few more times.
Even he couldn't help but be moved by such an impressive battle record.
Dalun Ruozan, Huoshu Huicang, Duan Gequan—these were all renowned generals of the present age. If he weren't being held down by We Tadra Khonglo and Dusong Mangpoje, and could bring his Big Dipper Army down south, he would have no problem defending, but defeating them… not even Geshu Han was confident he could do that.